


Beautiful Plans

by KingAlanI



Category: Hunger Games (2012), Hunger Games Series - All Media Types, Hunger Games Trilogy - Suzanne Collins
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-07-21
Updated: 2013-04-02
Packaged: 2017-12-06 18:11:26
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 15,034
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/738622
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KingAlanI/pseuds/KingAlanI
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>By Alan Gilfoy in the world of Suzanne Collins. Gale's Hunger Games from Glimmer's perspective. To win the Games will take everything she has – including her looks, and that's where Cato comes in.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Selection

A couple centuries ago, the world had been battered by natural disasters and the subsequent wars. The Capitol brought order to the land surrounding it – a northern continent divided into thirteen districts and now called Panem. The districts dared to break out in open rebellion decades ago. All paid the price; District 13 was entirely obliterated as punishment for instigating the defiance. The surviving districts were to be reminded every year – 24 people aged twelve to eighteen, a boy and a girl from each district, would fight to the death. One survived and was well rewarded, emblematic of the Capitol’s mercy. They showed restraint in not killing more.

 

Tomorrow was the big day, when the contestants of the 74th Hunger Games were determined. Here in District One, it was unnecessary to select someone at random – there were so many volunteers that there was competition to receive the honor. We had many past victors, and they determined who’d get a chance to join them.

 

            I would win the competition to get into the Games, and then the Games themselves. I had wanted it ever since I was a fairly little girl. When I was six, one of our boys won. One of our girls won the next year, and another did when I was fourteen. After our District trained them (an open secret), it honored and rewarded them. That could be me, and I was resolved that it would be me. I was now one year shy of the age maximum, but still felt ready.

           

            Cashmere was the girl from ten years ago. I knew her particularly well; many of us identified with her more so than some of the old-timers. I started making my case. “I want to go a year early.”

“How come, Glimmer?”

“Next year would be my last chance, and it’s a Quarter Quell – you know how they change the rules for those; the alternate rules might not allow me in or be in my favor.”

“Glim, I’ve always liked you. Let’s see if the other victors see it like we do.” _I hope so. Her brother Gloss and our predecessor Emerald would likely be on my side, but I wasn’t sure about District One’s other victors._

They delivered their decision later in the day. “Here’s who we’ll let volunteer.” The group of victors spoke in unison, then paused. “Glimmer and Marvel.” _I don’t know why they picked Marvel – fairly big and strong, but a few links shy of a chain. Well, I’d have to work with it/him._

 

Now to get dressed for the big day. Emerald, who won a couple decades ago, had already given me a ring set with her namesake stone. I picked out a green and gold dress to go with it. The thing barely cleared my knees, just the way I like it. The rules of the Games allowed tributes to bring a piece of home into the arena. We were given standard outfits – _ugh_ – but I could use this ring as my token.

 

With the volunteers arranged beforehand, the actual ceremony was usually fairly uneventful. The district mayor read the usual spiel about the Games. He made the handoff to our Capitol escort – Jane, what a glamorous woman. I loved her style – I wanted to be that well made-up. I was also a fan of her voice – high pitch, distinctive vowels, clipped except for a long S. It was a common accent in the Capitol, but it worked particularly well with her.

 

I zoned out when she went to pick a name at random. We knew it was just a formality – even the person selected didn’t care. However, I was patient in waiting for my moment. “I volunteer as tribute.” Marvel’s followup was similarly anticlimactic.

 

“And the honor of representing District 1 in the 74th Annual Hunger Games goes to Glimmer and Marvel! Happy Hunger Games, and may the odds be ever in your favor!” For thirteen people from our district, the odds were in their favor. Most of them were still alive, and they led the district in applauding its brave youngsters.

 

People close to the tributes went to the Justice Building to see them off. Family members generally went in first. A few years ago, I got a boy to do some heavy lifting for me with just a smile. When I told Mom, and she said that only got bigger and better as you got older. Maybe the Games involved taking that to its logical conclusion. She still didn’t quite understand why I was doing this. I tried to explain my volunteerism in language she’d appreciate.

 

“Mother, someone’s gotta do it, might as well be someone like me with a good chance.”

My little sister Lustre was more enthusiastic. “Of course you’ll win, you’re awesome. And maybe it will be me up there so day.” _She_ had _started the Career training._

“If you prove yourself worthy, I’d be glad to help you make the Games a family affair. Maybe it runs in the district – after all, Cashmere won the year after her brother Gloss. You’re more than a year away from being ready though.”

“Shine on, Glim. See ya in a few weeks.”

 

I’m single right now, so no significant others to say goodbye to. I had boyfriends before, but none of them had stuck. I’ve been focused on training for the Games anyway. There’d be plenty of opportunity for that afterwards.

 

Most of my social circle was fellow Career trainees. Some were jealous that I’d been chosen instead. Others came by out of professional respect, but I don’t think I had any real friends amongst them.

 

Cashmere was lined up as my mentor, so I’d be seeing plenty of her. However, she hurried to say something to me before we even got on the train. “You got the looks, and it seems like you know how to use them. But don’t forget about the blades.” _High heels and daggers. I sure do like both kinds of stilettos._


	2. The Other 22

            It was a short train ride to the Capitol. After all, District One surrounded it. However, there was plenty of time to get an introduction to a standard of luxury even higher than what we had at home.

 

            “Exquisite dinner spread, Jane.”

            “Killer grub, bitch.”

            _Glimmer versus Marvel in a nutshell_.

 

            We’d watch recaps of the other reapings while on the train. Our mentors/trainers had already made us familiar with that procedure. Gloss was working with his sister like usual – while he was a year older, it was clear that she was the dominant figure. I was the first to blast their thoughts on the other 22.

 

“ _Two_ volunteers from Twelve? I don’t believe it! I’d say that the guy has a chance, but the girl is screwed.”

            Gloss was calm and collected. “Everdeen. Hawthorne. They both took the hit for younger siblings. Don’t underestimate the things that someone will do out of love.”

            “Whatever. The fellow from Eleven also looks like a threat.  Now, the young man from Two looks dangerous … and hot.” _I could feel those muscles already._

            “You always had a thing for the bad boys, Glim.” _Cashmere knew me well._

            My district partner saw an opportunity for a wisecrack. “Shouldn’t be hard to get him to sleep with you – I know I wouldn’t take much convincing.”

            “Like I’ve said before, you’re nothing to _marvel_ at.” _If I had to turn him down_ again _I might as well joke about it._

            He changed the subject. “His district partner and both of the people from Four look kinda small. I mean, they’re our fellow Careers, what kinda tricks do they have up their sleeves?”

 

            Cashmere announced “Time for people with a Y chromosome to leave the room.”

            After Gloss and Marvel acquiesced to the instruction, I said, “Okay, Cash, whatcha got in mind?”

            “This could work out very well for you if he feels the same way. Nobody except maybe Thresh or Gale would be able to take him in a one-on-one fight. This might be your way out if it came to that. Don’t think with your genitals; get him to think with his. He might just let his new lover win.”

“I’m due for another one of those injections.”

“Cancel that. Getting pregnant might not be such a bad idea.”

“What?!”

“You have mentioned wanting kids someday. This just moves up the schedule. If his girlfriend doesn’t convince him, his babymomma might.”

“This isn’t what I meant by using my looks in the Games … and what about the consequences, especially since by definition the father won’t be around?”

“It will be hard, at least by District One victor standards. But that’s better than no life at all. You will be supported. Besides, you’ll be rich, and it’s not like victors have anything else to do most of the time.”

“But you’re always busy in the Capitol.”

“That’s because Snow forces the attractive victors to whore themselves out, but this may be a way out of that for you.”

 

I’d have to sleep on _that_! I’d have time for at least a short nap before we arrived in the Capitol. The city was beautiful, and so were the fashions of its people. The train station wasn’t so decorated, but it still shined. It was pretty empty; tribute trains were the station’s only business on Reaping Day. The display of pending arrivals listed 3/2 from the west (Cato!), 7/6/5 from the northwest, 4/10 and 11/9 from the southeast, and 12/8 from the east.

 

There was a building near the station where we met our stylists and prep teams. Stephanie was in charge, and she was the pinnacle of a glamorous Capitol woman, making Jane look downright frumpy by comparison. “Looks like you don’t need much work.”

“Thank you, but could you touch up my legs and arms a bit?” After that and a bit of other pampering, it was time for the parade outfits! _Ooh la la!_ A pink fur coat, with an even brighter jeweled headdress. Marvel had something similar in a darker red without any headgear.

            “Looks great, but the shoes?”

            “It’s hard enough to navigate the chariot in flats. Sorry, Glimmer.”

            While waiting for those vehicles, we saw some of the other tributes in person for the first time. 3,4,5,6 and 9 were various sorts of shiny, although of course not as nice as us. 8 threw a lot of colored fabric at the audience, and didn’t look as nice as us either. 7 was so plain, just paper. Cato looked even more dangerous in that armor. Yummy.

 

A Peacekeeper interrupted my thoughts. “Chariots are almost here, ladies and gentlemen.” Looking outside, I saw dark carts pulled by dark horses. “Simply climb right up and hold on.” The carts had open backs and front handles, so this was easy enough to do. The horses soon took off and the ride didn’t take long. The end of the road was surrounded by seats full of ecstatic Capitolites, cheering for the tributes. We entered in district numerical order, so I got to start.

 

I was looking good and they knew it. I joined the other half of the crowd in going nuts for Cato; my voice was lost in the glorious chaos. Once we turned around at the end, I got a good look at the audience and the other districts. I swear, Cato was smiling at me. But what the hell, Twelve looks like they’re on fire, and the crowd is going crazy. She has a nice stylist. That bitch! And look at her with her district partner. That bitch!

 

I recognized Caesar Flickerman in the balcony. He always had an impeccable color scheme, blue this year. He was a legend in Capitol media for his coverage of the Games. He was just finishing an interview with Head Gamemaker Seneca Crane. “Thank you, Mr. Crane. I hope the Games are as exciting as you anticipate. I just love how clever the stylists are each year, reflecting the character of each district. And now for a word from our President.”

 

Flickerman and Crane left the platform as Coriolanus Snow entered. His words shone brighter than our mayor’s recitation of the usual spiel. He closed his speech with the classic lines, “Welcome to the 74th annual Hunger Games. Tributes, you have the honor of representing your districts’ loyalty to the Capitol. Happy Hunger Games, and may the odds be ever in your favor.”

 

This arena was at the base of the training center. A few days of showing off and watching the others at work wouldn’t hurt. The first district got the first floor, of course. Jane was very well organized as she gave us our next instruction: “Nice job. Be ready for dinner back down here in forty-five.”

 

Guess who else was on the elevator? The District Two team! “Cato. I’ll be seeing you at dinner … and afterwards.” His mouth opened, but no sound was coming out. _Stunned another one._

Then he said something. “You got that right.” I matched his wink by cranking up the wattage of my smile even further. His district partner obviously did not look happy with this. _Somebody jealous?_

Someone brought up our clothes from home, but also our uniforms for the rest of training. Black, silver and red with our district numbers. I put on a set. It fit, but did not flatter me. Darn it.

 

“Ready?” _You know I am, Jane._

“I’ve been ready most of my life – let’s go!”

Nothing much to do here – might as well get there early.I saw Cato in the hallway; evidently he was thinking the same thing. “Pleasure seeing you again – the more I see of you, the better. Can barely think of anything besides your hot self since the reaping recaps.” _Nice way of introducing yourself, mister._

“You’re real easy on the eyes yourself, big boy.”

“ _Those_ eyes? I figured a District One woman would shine like gems.” _Smooth move._ His hands fell to my waist, and that couldn’t have felt more natural. My heels helped bring me closer to his height, and he attacked my mouth with his. We could have kept up the tongue-wrestling all day, but we did have a dinner to attend to.

 

The dining hall had just a few long tables, to keep the tributes in close proximity. One of the officials said, “The entrance to the training rooms is over there. Be there by ten tomorrow morning.” I knew where it was, but it was different seeing all this Capitol stuff in person.

 

Cato wasn’t so patient, perhaps because of our beautiful plans for after this meal was over. “Hey lady, cut the crap. I’m starving.”

Hawthorne had some anger of his own to let out. “You have no idea! Try feeling empty even after tesserae and get back to me on that!” _The Capitol gave you extra food if you took extra reaping entries. We wanted to be in the Games, and didn’t bother – I hear it wasn’t that much and tasted horrible. A few at home did on a lark, or out of an acquired taste, I suppose._ The poor districts depended on that act of mercy; Gale’s district partner and some other tributes joined him in being ungrateful bastards.

 

Once we got to the food table, I settled on a main course of light-colored sausage. On the way to our seats, Cato whispered “I know what I’m having for dessert.” _You sure do._ We Careers gathered at one end of the table. Clove was devouring a steak; the knife practically blurred in her hand. I saw Gale stride over towards our territory. I let out a smooth greeting. This didn’t faze him as he continued to stare down Cato. _What the hell? Usually I just bat my eyes, and there’s a broken heart. Nobody ignores me. You really see something in your ugly district mate?_

 

            Alex said, “Ten sent a cripple, Eleven sent a mute, did Twelve send a blind man?”

            Marvel piled on, “Nah, he knows she’s out of his league.” I dismissively flipped my hair while reminding him that he wasn’t one to talk.

            Cato spoke to us and then to him. “Knock it off. Twelve has good tributes for once.” _Why is he concerned about Katniss too?_ “You over here because you want in on our alliance?”

Hawthorne was dismissive again in turning down the offer. “Definitely not. At least you recognize we’re not to be trifled with.”

 

In a few days I’d be killing some of them, and I looked forward to it, except for _him_. I left my dishes with the Avoxes and started thinking about the rest of the evening.


	3. The Feeling Is Mutual

“Your place or mine?,” I whispered in my sexy voice. I don’t think either of us particularly cared, but we still had to pick something. _A girl that’s as fine as me should be living it up. Walked into a room full of guys and took my pick. Now I’m all he can imagine and we’re about to make it happen._

            “Yours is fine.”

 

            I walked back to wait for him. Gloss wanted to talk strategy, but I shoved my left hand practically in his face. Marvel explained my preoccupation, forming a circle with the thumb and forefinger of his left hand and sticking his right index finger into it. _That is correct, but not with you._ Cashmere knew to keep her distance. Jane was nowhere to be seen either.

 

Cato and I both knew we’d have to look good for the sponsors. Neither of us expected jealousy or intended to be too affectionate in public.

 

I heard a banging on the door. The stud was paying me a visit, and as he put it, “It’s Cato, and I think you know exactly why I’m here.”

So I hurried to open the door. “Yes, yes I do. Go on, get what you came here for.” He didn’t need much prompting. He grabbed for my clothes and left the tribute uniform in a pile of rags on the bedroom floor. His pants followed. “Hello!” I whistled and placed my palms far apart from each other for emphasis.

“No steroids, baby, these muscles are all natural.” He flexed as he said this, and I sure wasn’t complaining.

Cato looked rather smug as he threw me onto the bed. I’m thin and proud of it, but I suppose I’m heavy by the standards of a track and field object. I’m glad we’re on the same side! I landed with a satisfying thud and my chest jiggled along with the mattress. He slid off his shirt and I sure wasn’t complaining about that either. I challenged him to pick up the pace further. “I’m glad we’re on the same side! I just wish this could last longer. Only one of us comes out of the Games alive…that’s gonna be hard, but there’s something else that needs to come hard right now.” I moved my hips up and my legs out to highlight the point. Once he got started, he didn’t waste any time, ramming it in all at once. _Ooh._ I involuntarily squealed. Several minutes of more delicious pounding later, he started to pull back, must be about to go off. “No, stay right there.” And so I was filled.

He let out a drawn-out “Holy shit!” _You got that right._

            “You can have home-field advantage next time, but I’m not going without my fix tomorrow night.”

            He kissed me, again without much restraint. _Mmmh, he knows what he’s doing, and he’s got some fire in him._ _Just how I like it_. He dressed and left. The memory came flooding back right away and I got myself off before taking a shower and flopping down on the bed exhausted. I normally would have liked to play with the scents and soaps, but I was too tired right now to have any patience for that.

 

            When I awoke, I made a point of wearing racy underwear under the next tribute uniform set. I could feel Cato yanking it off of me already. I somewhat fixed up my hair and wandered out into the main room of the apartment. Cashmere greeted me with “Someone’s in a good mood this morning.” _I suppose I was still glowing._

            Marvel was already up and at ‘em, and gave Cash the sarcastic rejoinder of “Gee, I wonder why?” _Anyone in the apartment would have heard us. I don’t care if he was polishing his spear while listening in as long as I didn’t have to hear or see_ that _._

 

            Eager for battle, we rushed to the training center. Head Trainer Atala was serious as well she should be, but some of her information was rather basic to us Careers. “No fighting with other tributes before you enter the arena! Our assistants can spar with you if desired.”

Christopher, the boy from Five, interrupted her. “Miss Atala, what if somebody attacks us with a pointed stick?” _Cato can attack me with his stick anytime._

“As I said, the spear station is right behind me…Don’t dismiss survival skills. Many tributes die of exposure, not in combat. The arena environment could be anything.” _Whatever, the good districts get the good stuff from the Cornucopia and the good sponsors. Now we could get started._

 

I wasn’t sure where to go first. Cato and the girl from Twelve were both quicker to make up their minds. Cato could run surprisingly fast for a big guy – I expected him to be terrifying once he started working the cold steel, and he was. Evidently Twelve could shoot. I never did quite grasp archery, and she’s already a better shot than me. That bitch! I knew Marvel’s thing was throwing spears, and Cato was just as good at that too. Clove also liked ranged weapons, but knives instead of spears and bows and arrows. I eventually gravitated to the station for non-throwing knives. Katniss was a sucker for the little girl from Eleven. _They’d both pay for that._

 

            All this stabbing was making me hungry. Fortunately, one of the staff called for lunch and told us we had a half hour.

            “Hah! Not enough time for a quickie.” _Marvel, why don’t you just shut up?_

            “I bet you would know about being quick.” Cato congratulated me for the necessary insult. _He certainly had no trouble with that._

            Alex piled on. “I hate to say it, man, but you got told!”

            An undaunted Clove kept firing at Cato. “How else are you enjoying the Capitol?”

            “Good eatin’ … I’m used to the healthy yet simple stuff at home.”

“I’m with you on that … hey Avox, another everything sandwich over here.”

Pearl, Alex’s district partner, started talking business. “Thresh can pump some serious iron – Gale, not so much.” Cato agreed about Gale, but hadn’t seen Thresh.

I also was thinking of 12. “Freaking Katniss, how does she make a bow work like that?”

“I don’t know, but any archery equipment needs to be kept out of her hands, even if you aren’t so great with it yourself.” _Yeah, Cato was the leader of this little group._

 

I figured I’d focus on the knives and daggers some more after lunch, but Cato had another idea. “Wrestling mat. Watch this.” He got the instructor in two quick falls. Of course Cato was gonna win, but I didn’t think he’s make it that easy. Thresh was next – two out of three falls and not as quick. I figured. Big as Cato, not trained like him.

 

Cato joined me over at the station for non-throwing knives.  Did he want to show off with yet another weapon, be close to me, or both? After a little while, he got to demonstrate the rage that went with his weapons skills. He shoved the dude from Six. “Where’s my knife?”

“I told you, I don’t have it.”

“That’s what they all say.” Everdeen and the other usual suspects seemed amused at Cato’s misfortune. Six would join them on his target list.

Atala brought over a Peacekeeper to break it up. “What part of ‘don’t fight with other tributes yet’ don’t you understand?”

 

From here on out, dinner was back in the district apartments – just two tributes and their staff. In general, it was easier to talk business without the other tributes around. For me in particular, I wouldn’t be distracted by Cato.

“Seems Four don’t care who’s sleeping with who.” _Gloss was right._ “That might help hold the Career pack together. This year is particularly volatile, but I always say you have to be ready when the Career pack breaks. There have been five Career victors in the nine Games since myself and my sister won. Only one of those was from District One.”

“I remember her – Sapphire Silversmith in 71…”

Gloss whispered to Marvel, but I overheard anyway. “Most males in Panem remember Sapphire quite clearly, but don’t say it.” _Yes, Ms. Silversmith is nearly as pretty as I am._

“…I was quite inspired by the District One victors of my childhood – you, your sister and Sapphire. I was alive when Ivory won in 59, but too young to remember it.”

“So, Marvel, why are you here?”

“Seems like in District One, you either win the Games, die in them, or you ain’t nothin’. I’ve made up my mind – fame and wealth, or death. So, Mr. Goldman, what do you do when the Career alliance breaks?”

“Surprise, ranged weapons or both.”

“Well, I’ve got my javelin…”

I interrupted him with “So does Cato. Speaking of Two, Clove loves her throwing knives and definitely seems unbalanced enough to go for the surprise blow. Four I can’t figure out.”

“Neither can I,” replied Marvel. “But I can figure out what Glimmer’s about to do.”

“Yeah, this meeting’s over.”

 

            I went back into my bedroom to dress up for the occasion – skirt, white jacket, diamonds and chain. Middle finger up, I don’t really give a fuck. I’d metaphorically rub it in Marvel’s face. “Your stylist says you ain’t packin’ too much, big shit-talker.” _I wasn’t making this up – I had overheard some girl talk between her and Stephanie._ “I’m not gonna be your victim; I’d rather stalk him.”

 

Clove was somewhere else, so there was no more taunting to be had. I’d literally rub it in Cato’s face. The door was open, but he was standing in the frame.

“Let me in, but I might be breaking the law, so frisk me real good, especially underneath.”

“I guess,” he smirked.

 

I somehow had the presence of mind to be careful about taking the jewelry off and putting it down – even on a victor’s salary, replacing those would not be fun. I also had enough of my head about me to shut the door. Then he said “Hands above your head…that’s the only way your shirt’s coming off.” _Ooh, he’s in a fun mood. Don’t have to tell me twice._ He clearly enjoyed every second of running those big hands up the sides of my chest, and I did too. It didn’t take long for him to slide the skirt down over my hips. With it lying at my ankles, I removed one foot and kicked it up onto the dresser.

 

I could tell he enjoyed the light blue lace, however little of it now stood as the only thing between me and complete nakedness. I lead him on with “Tonight, Imma let you do your thing, yeah.” _Any night._ My breathing picked up as we pressed our bodies together. I was reminded that I had found someone exactly as crazy as I was. Well, I’d never get anything out of a simple life.

 

 “Tell me something, boy, what do you have in store?”

“There’s one delicacy I haven’t tried yet.” He teased me with his fingers as the rest of his hand pushed away the nearly-nonexistent panties. He got the message, and started taking more fingers and moving them faster. I was starting to lose it. He started kissing my legs.

 _No more messing around!_ “Come here right now!” He made the wise decision to quickly bring his mouth closer to my slit, and I went over the edge when his tongue finally made contact. He kept on flicking it until I was back on the edge, and I shook again once his thumb mashed my button.

We both collapsed onto the bed as he exclaimed “My turn!” while giving an especially devilish smile.

I started to kneel in front of him when I said, “That cannon isn’t to be wasted on my mouth.” I leapt all the way on him, and that tool was glad to slam back. I liked getting him all at once, and I made sure that happened tonight too. He knows where my nipples are too, and he played with those while we stared into each others’ eyes. I caught a glimpse of myself in one of the mirrors. This was a damn good excuse to be so messy.

 

He was fired up after doing such a good job taking care of me, so it wasn’t long before I could sense it. “I’m giving you permission to fill me again.”

“You got it.” We didn’t even let up as I felt the telltale pumping sensation.

 

We heard another knock on the door. It was the boy from District Three, obviously sleepy. “What is all this noise?”

Cato decided to parry his patronizing sarcasm in kind. “Stuff for big girls and big boys.”

“Very big boys.”

“Oh, you.” He tongued me again. He was getting real good at that, and I intended to give him plenty more practice.

 

“Lord you’re a great fuck, but you’re the first girl that’s ever felt like more than that.”

“Is that how tough guy says ‘I love you’?”

Stopped dead in his tracks, he took a few seconds to say “You’re right.”

The last kiss before we parted for the night was relatively tender by our standards.

 

The second day of training was pretty mundane except for just a few things. Once in the training center, I saw our friends from Twelve screwing around with the nature stuff. I saw in their eyes we weren’t the only couple in the tribute pool. Even someone as dim as Marvel could figure it out. “Dating a good-looking guy _from your district_. What a concept!” _Of course he had to let his jealousy shine through the realization._


	4. The Final Preparations

Neither of us wanted to wait for the fun stuff.  “Lie down on the bed and let me grab your legs.” _Ooh, I wonder what he has in mind._ With my ankles lifted onto his shoulders, he continued with, “How do you like this?”

“Very much so.”

“Well, you’re going to like _this_ even more.” He was right. I especially liked being taken at this angle.

“With you I sure am feeling it, no faking.” _I had to pull that trick before with some losers, but this one was a winner, if he didn’t keep me from winning the Games._

 

“So, who you got at home for you, Glim?” he said.

“My folks are alright, although Dad’s a little old fashioned. Lustre, though…she wants to be just like her big sister.”

“I’m an only child – it’s kinda hard to have younger siblings when your dad died before you were born.”

“Are those tears in big bad Cato’s eyes?”

“Glim, you have a special touch, you really do, but no one else hears about this.”

“No,” I pleaded. “A tough guy with a brain and a bit of a sensitive side? A lot of people like that. I sure do.” I leaned over to taste his tongue again. As I came up for air, I said, “Even before you came and swept me away, I didn’t have another boyfriend.” _It made sense to stroke his ego. I liked stroking something else of his._ “Glimmer can afford to be choosy,” I said in the third person.

“You sure can.”

“Why thank you. A lot of guys don’t get the message.”

“Like your district partner.”

“Ah sheesh, he’s a cool guy, but I definitely have never seen him in that way.”

“It’s kinda like that with me and Clove, but at least she’s smart enough to know it.”

“She’s one of the ones I’m most worried about. She’s so good now, imagine how good she’d be in a few years.”

“Marvel and I are only 17; we didn’t want to take our chances with the Third Quarter Quell. But she could have waited for the 76th or 77th too. Well, I’m also worried about Twelve. They’re both looking better and better in training. And this public lovebirds angle is brilliant. Four can play that game.” _Now he started to hesitate and I was ready to call him on it._ “I thought Cato wasn’t scared of anything.”

“I’m not.”

“Well, you seem to be afraid of emotions besides violent rage.”

“Not any more, not with you - maybe.” _You’re getting close._

 _Now get closer._ “No maybe about it – you know it. You admitted the truth to me last night. Just admit the truth to Caesar tomorrow night.”

“I don’t think it’s that easy.”

“Think about it. Our districts are usually unstoppable. This way, we’ll be even more so.”

 “I will, Glimmer Rose Shinesmith, I will!,” he said with his usual powerful tone of voice. _Right on target, and he even learned my wonderful middle name._

 

I left. I was somewhat drained from the emotional rush of finally getting through to him. Even without that, I had another glorious night I needed to wash off my body, and I loved all the perfumes in these fancy Capitol showers! The next morning, I noticed I was down to my last tribute uniform set. Glimmer out of clothes? Unacceptable!

 

Katniss and Rue took to the ropes course that morning. Katniss won and jumped right into Gale’s arms at the end. Yep, we’re not the only tribute couple here. Katniss steadied herself on the ground to catch eleven. She landed right on her new friend’s shoulders. The little girl who was here must remind her of the little girl she saved from being here. If I loved in one of those horrible districts (gasp!), would I do that for Lustre? Of course. Anyway, a lot of their friends enjoyed the show, even the big guy from eleven, and he had been silent through most of training.

 

Like most Careers, Cato and I ran the gauntlet near the end. We both loved this obstacle course – climb the steps, deal with the trainers’ padded clubs. I dodged most the blows. Cato simply took them and ignored them. Bad-ass. Then Gale went up last and nailed it.

 

Atala’s whistle blew. “And that’s it! Private sessions begin after lunch.”

 

Each of us had fifteen minutes alone to show off to the Gamemakers like we had been doing in public all week. I got to go first, and Cato got to go fourth. We had the training center to ourselves to demonstrate whatever we wanted to. I focused on my skill in stabbing and slashing with midsized non-throwing knives. I stayed away from archery, since that bitch from Twelve would probably make me look bad that anyway. I walked out quite pleased with myself. We just had to wait until before the interviews tomorrow evening to know exactly how well I did.

 

            I spent the next day getting even more ready for my big interview. Cashmere had it right. “You looking good and being charming is not going to be difficult.”

As usual, she was totally supportive of the Cato situation and would love to hear me mention it. “I got him to admit he’s smitten – I wonder what he’ll say about it tonight.”

“Congratulations. You’ve always had a gift, not just for charming the boys, but for appealing to people in general. They’ll love ya.”

“I know they will.”

“And it’s obvious how much you’re enjoying yourself, making the most of your big moment. Shine on, Glim.”

 

We finally got to hear out training scores right before leaving for interviews. Of course we’d be close to the high of twelve. A nine for me and a ten for Cato, yay. Both of us were tied by our district partners. District Four was high, but relatively low for Careers. The boys from Districts Eight and Eleven also got nines. The girl from District Five got a five – I’m glad that wasn’t a pattern. Seven would have been shit for me, but it was probably gold for Rue. Well then, an eleven and a ten was probably platinum for our friends from District Twelve.

 

The interviews were yet another thing in district number ladies first order, and that’s how we lined up outside of Caesar’s studio.

 

Stephanie came up with a wonderful outfit. The dress was short, light-colored, smooth and see-through. Not subtle at all; just how I liked it. It seemed Gale’s stylist also liked to show off. I already had Cato, but damn. The Capitol men were cheering for me – of course they would be.

 

As I started chatting with Caesar, some fool in the audience let loose with a two-toned whistle. _Whistling at me like that is Cato’s job!_ I bet that Marvel was joining in. However, some other guys, including other tributes, were behaving like gentlemen. Anyway, I had to make clear that it was not acceptable. I looked through the seats, staring everyone down. Once I was done with that, I said, “I have a boyfriend, you know.” Claudius announced that my time was up, so I wasn’t able to explain, but fortunately Cato came after me.

 

Marvel was goofing around with Caesar like I kind of expected. One of the things he joked about was who my boyfriend was. “I’m afraid it’s not me, but not for lack of trying.” _I guess the schmuck was going for sympathy points._

 

Clove made it clear that she was dangerous – ah, the pint-size peril. However, she had some sweetness mixed in with her sarcasm.

 

Cato was in a crisp black suit and a nice haircut. His mane was usually wild, in a way that I liked to run my fingers through. I have to say that the cheering Capitol girls had good taste in boys, but he’s mine, bitches. Caesar asked him a question first: “Why were you so eager to volunteer?”

            “I’m confident I can win this. I’m ready, willing and able to kill my way there. My father thought the same.”

            It was hardly unheard of for a victor’s child to end up in the Games, but Cato’s situation was different. As Caesar explained, “But Julius Adams _didn’t_ make it out of the 55th Games.” _So that’s how his dad died, and he still has the guts to be here._

            “Aye. His girlfriend (my mother) was already pregnant.” _I saw a bit of vulnerability in him again – I know I have that effect on him too._  He drew me out of my thoughts by saying, “An Adams will take the crown this time.”

I could tell from the gleam in his eye that he still had another thing on his mind. “That Glimmer, she’s something else, isn’t she? We fell for each other real quick.” The audience went wild. I knew it – looks, strength and something more.

 

Many of the other tributes had interviews as unimpressive as their training scores. The girl from Five seemed smart though.

 

Rue said, “If they can’t catch me, they can’t kill me. So don’t count me out.” Caesar agreed, but it sounded like a challenge to us Careers. Her district partner continued being difficult even under the studio lights, barely saying anything to Caesar. _It seems like he’s going for a silent-but-deadly angle._ Caesar was friendly and professional even when putting up with that nonsense.

 

Twelve Bitch was not ready for this, and Caesar was trying to be nice. “So, what’s your favorite part of the Capitol so far?”

“The lamb stew?”

“I can’t get enough of that stuff either, and I’m afraid it shows.” A lot of people cheered for him laughing at himself.

“But really, Cinna. He’s the nicest person I’ve met here, and aren’t the outfits amazing?” _I think she meant that for me. After all, curly-hair was making Stephanie look bad. Mr. Gold Eyes meant Career victory wasn’t quite guaranteed this year._

“Yes, that tribute parade will not soon be forgotten.”

She stood up and began to twirl around. The bottom of the dress looked like it was on fire like the tribute parade costumes, and the audience ate up that shtick again.

“Pretty girl like you must have a special guy.”

“We’ve been inseparable for years, but only recently fell in love.” _Cato hadn’t wasted any time. What had Gale been doing?_

“Well, go home to him; a victor is quite a catch.” _Caesar had a point, but…_

            “That won’t help.”

“Why not?”

“He’s here with me.” We had seen it coming, but the audience didn’t, so they fell silent. _Did it seem like they were copying us, or did it seem like they had one-upped us?_

 

Gale nearly missed his cue from the unmistakable deep booming voice of Games announcer Claudius Templesmith. “And now for the last of our tributes, the District Twelve male, Gale Hawthorne.”

 

            He swaggered through the stage lights to go sit next to Caesar. As with Cato, the females in the audience cheered the loudest, and it seems like Gale was used to the attention too.

 

            He shook Caesar’s hand as Caesar said, “Well, the girls are all over you, but supposedly one of them already has your heart.”

            “It’s true. She’s the only one for me; all the lovers that came before don’t compare to her. A certain couple has known each other for four and half days; we’ve known each other for four and half years.” _Real subtle there, Hawthorne. Real subtle._

“So you volunteered to save your girlfriend?” _That’s sweet but stupid, and did the Capitolites see the same reaping I did?_

“No, my brother. That damsel can handle her own distress…” _Frankly, you on her side is going to make killing her a lot more difficult._ “…but Rory needs my help.”

 “That’s basically what she said about…”

 

He started talking rapid-fire after ending Caesar’s sentence: “Prim. We’re exceptions to the saying, ‘family loyalty only goes so far on reaping day’. We already do all we can for them. We basically had to after our fathers died in the mines. This includes taking the tesserae.” The audience was quiet. _It’s easy – more food and you get a better chance of getting to go to the Games._ “Take additional food rations, get additional reaping entries. Here, the Avoxes serve us more than we know what to do with.” _Yeah, the food is really good here._ “District Twelve’s gonna have a victor. I guarantee it. Someone’s going to live through this. When it’s over, they and our folks will never be hungry again. I’m proud to bear Rory’s amateur artwork as my token.” _Gale showed the rough family portrait. It wasn’t very well done, but it still reminded me of Lustre – lil’ shiny wanted to be a jewelry designer some day, and she often sketched out ideas. Our father is a jewelry metalworker – sometimes he could make samples of Lustre’s ideas._

 

“Now, Katniss’ three minutes are already up, but let’s hear it for the two most loyal older siblings in the country.” Much of the crowd was on their feet. Frankly, I joined them, since I would have done that for Lustre if I had to.

 

Gloss gave us a gambling update. “Shinesmith, the odds are in your boyfriend’s favor.” It’s true, Cato has the lead at 3-1. “Marvel at 5-1, Glimmer at 7-1, you’re both doing okay. But Twelve are both at 4-1.” _With Clove at 6-1, that meant the district odds were with Twelve. I figured Gloss was too smart to point that out to Marvel, who was too stupid to realize it._

Cashmere said, “I’m working hard to get your bettors to back it up with sponsorship money.” _You’re probably focusing on the good-looking men, but I can’t blame you for making two rings with one jewel. I already had my date for tonight._

 

Cato came to my apartment again. I greeted him with no clothes and few words. “What you said about me was beautiful.”

“You really opened my heart. You deserved it. Lately, pleasing a woman is what most makes me feel like a man. No, not a woman, this particular woman.” _Swoon._

“Even more than the show of force downstairs? Bet you’ve felt like quite a man lately.”

“I know what I feel right now.”

“I feel it too.”

“That much is apparent – even if you were dressed, I would have seen it in your eyes.”

“My breasts are down here, pal.”

“Oh, I know. I love the way they feel as I run my hands all over your body. I love the way they taste.”

I enjoyed his fingers and mouth on my chest, but I was already ready for more. “I’m already beyond turned on for you. Give it to me. Let’s share that feeling again,” I said while tugging at his waistband. Yet again, I demanded that he take care of me right away. Yet again, I squealed over his first powerful stroke, and kept it up as he continued ramming me. I loved the feel of taking his load. Though it was similar to our past encounters, he was getting a better and better idea of what worked with my body and mind. The odds had brought us together and gave us only a few days with each other before the odds would drive us apart again.

 

He got up to leave. “If nothing else, this has been one heck of a week. Well, goodnight and shine on.”

“I know it’s been more than that. Stay right here.” Surprisingly, he listened. Snuggled up against the rock-hard chest of such a guy, I’d be hard-pressed to think of a better way to spend our last night before the arena.

 

Cashmere woke us up. “Good morning, _you two._ You go, girl.”

I knew Cash understood, and evidently his mentor Brutus did too. “Adams, you disappeared, but we all knew exactly where you were.”

 

Once I woke up and got ready, a Peacekeeper came to the apartment to bother me. “Miss Shinesmith! Your token had a poisoned spike hidden in it!”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about!”

“You should know that a token with an advantage is a grave violation of the rules of the Games.”

“Relax. She had no idea.” _Thank you, Cashmere. Darn you, Emerald._

 

The medics gave us a checkup before we headed out to the arena. Something piqued my doctor’s interest. “Miss Shinesmith, evidently you’re pregnant.”

“Yes! And my baby’s coming out of the arena with me.” _But the father isn’t._

“You kids from the inner districts, always so confident. However, this is something new.”


	5. Run This

            The tributes were to gather for breakfast near the hovercraft that would fly us to the arena. However, us Careers showed up early to talk amongst ourselves. “It’s simple. We kill Katniss.” _Yep, that’s my big bad Cato, always in charge._ I joined Clove in loudly agreeing with objective 1. I knew that the boy from Three was the only one Cato successfully invited into the Careers. Cato laid down the rules again. “You’re guaranteed a spot in the crew – if you kill someone.”

            He suddenly hesitated… “Well, ah…”

            …and Cato was having none of it. “Blow me.”

            “I thought that was Glimmer’s job.” He _had_ kinda caught us once, and had a sense of humor about that. _Ironically, that was one of the things I hadn’t done to Cato yet. It looked great and felt great, I had to find out how it tasted. Evidently it already did what it evolved to do._ Anyway, all seven of us shared a laugh before getting back to business.

            “ _I_ kill the boy from Six. Other than that, kill who you can. Alex, go for the easy kills. Marvel, help him out with that.” _He probably didn’t want either of them causing trouble for the rest of us, and that was a good way to keep them out of trouble for now._ “No fucking around trying to make the kills fancy – that might get you killed.” _Badass and smart enough – that’s Cato._

            He closed the meeting with “The odds are in our favor.”

           

Nathan left once the other tributes started to show up, but that twerp Alex kept hanging out like usual. _You’re still a little boy even when you hang around the big boys._ “I hear warrior queen was pretty passionate last night!” Cato just had to high-five him for that. _I thought we weren’t supposed to kiss and tell – or tell about any of the other things we did_. Gale grimaced. _You too? Bet you and fire girl were real sweet with each other._

 

 _Food time._ I ate gracefully and a small amount, since being a glamorous beauty was my angle. _Until they saw me end lives and heard I was creating one._ Marvel was stuffing his face. _You’re not eating for two – what’s your excuse?_

 

            A peacekeeper said simply “It’s time”. We paraded down the green carpet that led to the hovercraft and climbed up the ladder. The passenger bay had seats on the edges and we donned the restraints. Now we got our trackers from the Capitol medics. Obviously they needed to follow us during the Games. The injection was of a device, not a drug, but getting it still gave me a rush.

 

            There was an announcement: “Fifteen minutes out.” Once the time was almost up, they darkened the windows to hide the arena until we were launched into it. The light came back when we landed in the complex underneath the arena. We went our separate ways – the rules of the Games randomized the order in which we were placed around the Cornucopia. Where would the ‘FEMALE 1’ corridor lead? The Peacekeepers escorted me down it towards the Launch Room.

 

            Stephanie was waiting with the tribute uniform. It was the same for everybody, the positive of that being that Cato and I would have matching outfits. It looked like there was nothing particularly extreme about the arena environment. The pants and shirt were both green, and the pants had plenty of pockets. _Good for storing all the stuff we’ll get from the Cornucopia._ I put the zippered hooded thin black jacket on over it. It was all complemented with leather – boots and a belt.

 

            “It’s time. Shine on, Glim.” I climbed into the clear cylindrical elevator that would carry me into the arena. It stopped once the platform was level with the floor of the Arena.

 

The Final Countdown

 

We had to take in the arena for a minute before we could start our rampage. Landmines by the platforms made sure of that. _Years ago, the girl from Seven dropped her token and triggered the mine – they were that sensitive!_ A big timer on the Cornucopia showed the countdown.

 

 _Sixty._ This is the moment we had spent much of our lives preparing for. Myself and the rest of the Careers broke the rules and don’t care – life’s a game and it’s not fair. We’re addicted to the thrill and I felt it coming in the air.

 

 _Fifty._ There’s Cato, about a third of the way around to my right. Rue’s directly to my left, should be easy to chase the little girl down.

 

 _Forty._ Hawthorne’s right between me and Cato. The other allies and threats must be on the other side where I can’t see them.

 

 _Thirty._ I better grab that bow before Katniss does. Somebody’s gotta do it. We’d be running for the heart of the Cornucopia anyways.

 

 _Twenty._ The boy from Four is right next to Rue. _Let’s see if you can live up to that tough game you’ve been talking._

 

 _Ten._ Let’s go for it! I count the last numbers as I’m ready to make a mad dash for glory. Nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one…

 

 _Zero._ The gong went off. Can’t be scared when it goes down.

            I hear the screams from everywhere. I see Rue running away. The boy from Ten tries, but he can’t move very fast. Our boy from Four grabs a spear and runs it through him. I saw Marvel stab a girl.

 

            Now we’ve got a problem! That bitch beat me to the bow! She was trying to aim it at Cato. _I don’t think so!_ I grabbed a machete off the rack as I ran towards _her_. Out of nowhere, Hawthorne comes up and trips me. I had the presence of mind to not fall on my baby or my weapon. As I’m lying on my side, I look up to see Hawthorne. He’s much more imposing as this angle, with that pack and the look of rage in his eyes. He grabs at me but I contort so that his arm misses its mark and I leap back up, again out of his way. I had saved Cato – Katniss shot Pearl instead. Alex speared another before being on the receiving end of Katniss’ next shot.

 

            The bloodbath was ending, so it was time for us Careers to gather at the base of the Cornucopia and the rest of the tributes to leave the area. Marvel threw a spear at the boy from Seven. Clove got the boy from Nine with her knives, but missed a certain girl from Twelve. She could use that bow to hunt, and her boyfriend’s pack certainly has plenty of goodies. This could be a problem, since other tributes’ lack of supplies often made it easier to deal with them.

 

            Ten cannons went off, and I wasn’t responsible for any of them. _Well, even if I can’t get any of my own, Cato would certainly let me finish off some of the group kills later._

 

            I was looking through some of the food packs left in the Cornucopia when I heard Cato clear his throat and announce “Okay, gentlemen and ladies, it’s time for a debriefing about the bloodbath.”

“I think Glimmer has already debriefed you.” _He wears undershorts which he is perfectly capable of taking off without my help, you smart-aleck._

“Thank you for that, Nathan. Anyway…”

After Cato told him off, Marvel was the first to get down to business. “I stabbed the girl from Three.” _Probably shouldn’t rub that in her district partner’s face._ He stopped to correct himself. “Sorry about that.”

“No need. I don’t know someone just ‘cause we’re from the same city, and it’s not like I was going home with her anyway… I bludgeoned the girl from Eight.” _Well I suppose that like Four, you’re at least living up to your talk._

After we got sidetracked, Marvel said “I javelined the boy from Seven.”

“Everybody, thank you for following instructions by letting me get the boy from Six. I got his district partner while I was at it. However, someone who was not supposed to get a bow got a bow!” Cato raised his voice for the last part.

“I tried, but damn, that bitch can run.” I spoke up before anyone else could piss off Cato further.

Marvel said “No other archery equipment in there” about his search of the Cornucopia.

I explained that “I tried to do the next best thing, grab a knife and cut her down, but Gale wasn’t cooperating.”

Clove had no luck either. “She dodged my first throw. I had another lined up, but Thresh doesn’t want to cooperate either. I took another shot as she was fleeing the area, but she blocked it. I got the boy from Nine. That’s my only kill so far. Katniss got our comrades from Four and Alex speared a couple first. That’s all ten cannons.”

We heard the eleventh right after she finished talking. “Okay, let’s try and find it. Nathan, stay back here,” Cato said.

 

            When we were about to leave to check the forest, I stood next to Cato, him with a sword and me with a machete of course. Marvel and Clove were behind us. We found the District Ten girl. Supposedly she was sixteen, yet her vulnerable eyes made her seem no older than Lustre at thirteen going on fourteen. Clove stepped to the right and got ready to throw. I saw the fear in her target’s eyes. After the cannon, Clove felt the need to rub it in. “Did you see that? She was all like _please don’t kill me_.” Cato congratulated her for that. _I guess it didn’t make sense to argue with Clove._

            We were finding nothing and no one after that, and I had had enough. “How about we head back for dinner?”

            “Fine by me.” Cato quickly approved; Marvel and Clove quickly followed him.

 

            Once we got back, I noticed Nathan was digging some holes. “Shovels. Good for more than just hitting tributes. I was thinking about how to guard our stuff…”

            “Trenches?,” Cato interrupted.

            “No.”

            “Traps?”

            “In a way – I think I can figure out how to reactivate the land mines after we excavate them and rebury them around the supplies.” _Sounds like a great idea…_

            _…Cato agreed._ “I like your thinking – that’s what you’re here for. But speaking of supplies, it’s chow time. It’s getting dark – we can work with the supplies in the morning.”

 

            It was nothing fancy compared to the Capitol feasts, but there was plenty. Cato and I finished before the others. I finally had an opportunity to break the news to him alone. “We need to talk.”

            “Sure. Talk.” Marvel made that obscene finger gesture again.

            We got out of earshot of them. I was about to lay down the facts when he said, “What is it, Sparkles?”

            I laughed as I responded with “Don’t call me sparkles.” Then I got serious. “I’m pregnant. It’s yours, of course – why would I want to fuck anyone else, you stud?” _The (true) flattery would get the point across even if the simple fact wouldn’t._ “I always wanted children, and I doubt I could have picked a better father. I hope it’s as big, strong and cunning as you are.” _I meant this too._ “I love you and I know you love me.”

“That’s so true. I love Glim! I really love how you taught me _to_ love.”

“If I win, I’d see you in our child every day. Whichever one of us wins will have some very fond memories of the other. Let’s make it last.” He was sitting down, so it was easy to climb on top of him.

“I almost don’t want to do this right now, just to prove Marvel wrong.”

“I like your thinking. I’m sure we’ll find some time soon.”

 

At night, the Capitol recounted the deaths during the last day. They played the Panem national anthem as a cue that the recap was about to start. Also, a hovercraft with a projector screen showed the Capitol seal. Now we would find out about the death we didn’t know about and remind us of the ones we did know about. All the tributes got their pictures taken on the last day before the arena. Amongst other things, those pictures were used to identify the day’s fallen. The names were in district order, ladies first, like so much of Games procedure. The screen switched from the seal to the following list: District Three, Regina. District Four, Pearl. District Four, Alex. District Six, Kara. District Six, Ashton. District 7, Sawmill. District 8, Mackenzie. District 8, Samuel. District 9, Annie. District 9, Imanol. District 10, Dakota. District 10, Jeremy. The anthem was played again at the end. _The District Eight male must’ve been the one we missed._

 

            We picked Nathan to be on lookout. Clove gave him some stimulants from the Cornucopia supply pile. _Of course – a tired guard would do no good._ As I was falling asleep on Cato’s arm, I thought to myself that I’d really miss him. In just a few days, Mr. Adams had become much more than a provider of genes or just another dick to jump on. Even the good can be a curse; knowing too much can get you hurt. I still would want to be a Victor without him, but now it felt like less of a win.

 

            I awoke slightly before he did and started stroking his cheek. I loved the look, I loved the feel of the scruff under my fingers. We’d have to let go, but not right now, please and thank you. For breakfast, I got a bag of fruit from the top of the pile and shared some with Cato. He crunched through one and said, “These are good. Hey Glim, why don’t you put them somewhere lower and safe?”

 

“Who do you have to kill to get some attention around here?” Marvel was not happy.

            “Taking care of Gale or Katniss would be nice,” Cato said, taking it at face value.

            “Well, I’m done with the grub,” Marvel said about breakfast. “Let’s go out looking for them.”

            “That’s the spirit,” Cato responded.

            “We have to secure the supplies first,” Clove reminded us. Nathan agreed most loudly, since it was his idea, but we all went to it.

 

            We removed what little hadn’t already been removed for the Cornucopia and put it in the same pile. Nathan found another shovel and gave it to Cato. They excavated all 24 of the mines. “Now what?,” Cato yelled.

“We bury them, I turn them on, we cover the holes, and then the odds will not be in the favor of people trying to steal our stuff. Ladies, it’s someone else’s turn with the shovels.”

 

Nathan was doing something with the mines while Clove and I went to work filling in the holes near the platforms. “So, how are your Games going so far, One?”

 _If Clove was going to be nice for now, I wasn’t about to complain, even though I hadn’t felt particularly talkative at the moment._ “Quite alright. I haven’t gotten any kills yet though.”

“Yeah, I kinda stole the Ten girl from you. Tell you what, I’ll lay off the next one.”

“Thank you.” We kept working two platforms apart and moving in the same direction so we could talk to each other without shouting.

“You’re welcome. And by the way, I guess I know how Twelve feels – I have a little sister to go home to too – Flavia is two years younger than me.”

“Lustre was born about three years and four months after me. In fact, one of the first things I remember is Mom bringing her home from the hospital.” _I loved her right from the start. When I learned where babies came from, I soon felt I wanted a little girl of my own some day._ “Lustre’s so much like her big sister.”

“Flavia’s not much like me, but she did teach me how to make these.” She put down her shovel to show her left wrist, on which there was a bracelet made of intertwined leather strips. “I wanted to tie a timepiece to the strap, but Enobaria told me off about that since it would probably be considered a token with an unfair advantage.”

“That’s where my token went to! You aren’t so bad, Two, but I won’t forget that we’re here to fight each other,” I finished.

“We’re not there yet – we go for Katniss first.” _Fair enough._

 

Nathan was making some progress with the mines, but he was tired from being up all night, and said “How about I take a nap while you four go out on patrol?”

We filled backpacks with food, water bottles and medicine. We were wearing them and about to leave when a cannon went off. Nathan fell asleep before he did something stupid with the mines, so who else was it?

 

            Apparently it wasn’t Logroll. I got a glimpse of the girl from Seven, and she must have noticed us too because she started running. Clove gave me a head start and I took off. My machete swinging like a racer’s baton, I quickly caught up with her. Just enough light came through the trees to gleam off my blade. It was basically a continuation of the running motion that brought it down into her arm. I swung again at the other arm. She bled out and the cannon sounded. I stood up to wave my blade and celebrate. However, the feeling of triumph was short-lived. I staggered into nearby high grass and vomited. _Morning sickness already? Baby or not, I did push myself during the run. They say your first kill is the hardest. Three in one, the odds were in vomit’s favor._ The hovercraft removing Logroll’s body fortunately kept me out of the cameras a bit. After it flew away, my friends ran over to me. “You okay, Dimmer?” _Even Marvel’s stupid nickname was comforting right now._

            “I’m fine, but let’s go home for the day. I suppose you can work on securing the supplies while I calm down.”

            I didn’t feel like it after all. Cato didn’t push me, and he didn’t let the others push me. They buried the mines, Nathan turned them back on, and Marvel pushed dirt back over them.

 

            The next morning, Clove asked “Why is Glimmer getting extra food?” _Because I’m eating for two now, and of course Cato is taking care of me. I expected you to figure it out and Marvel to be the clueless one._

            “It’s not like we’re running out, Spice,” Cato answered. His death stare ended the conversation.

 

            Nothing else happened that day.

 

During the middle of the fourth day, a cannon went off. I’m not sure who it was for, but I was pretty sure it brought us down to nine. When the nightly recap came up, we found out it was Marissa from Five. As soon as the recap sequence finished, Clove threw some knives at Nathan. Well, he had to go at some point. This brought us to the final eight, and the Gamemakers usually made a big deal about that. I guess they’d leave it until morning.

 

Claudius Templesmith’s legendary voice rang out. “Attention tributes! I have a special announcement. We are now down to the final eight, including both members of both couples. If either couple are the final two, they may win together.” _I wouldn’t have to abandon the father to the arena after all!_ “Also, there’s a baby on the way…” _The secret’s out._ “…and a marriage, but for different pairs.” _I wonder if that would give Cato any ideas. As soon as we get out of here and he asks, I’d accept in a heartbeat. He already made my heart pound…I want more of him and he wants more of me, and now we’ve got it!_

 

Cato, also joyous over the news, took me into his arms as he said, “We’re going home, Glim! This seems fitting – this year, our districts have their usual strength and something more, so they both get a victor. Just know that you're not in this thing alone; there's always a place in me you can call home.”

 

The Capitol always interviewed the families of the final eight. The camera crews were a regular sight in One. Even when we didn’t win, either or both of our tributes always made it at least this far. I know what I was thinking and I’m pretty sure it was what they were thinking back home. Not only was Big Shiny coming back, she found the man of her dreams along the way.


	6. The Final Countdown

So I could go home with Cato. Clove was right next to me when Claudius Templesmith broke the news, and I knew she wouldn’t like that one bit after all that had happened. That would buy me some time, but unfortunately I had to face Marvel. _I’m sorry._ He ran at me with a dagger and I caught his right wrist. He broke the hold easily but he dropped the dagger. He ran away with a packful of supplies. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Cato barely dodge one of Clove’s knives. A cannon sounded as Cato soon finished off Clove somehow. That was a nice bracelet she had, but stealing a dead tribute’s token is something you just didn’t do.

 

I told Cato which direction Marvel had run off in. Cato took the lead with a throwing spear, while I was behind and to the left of him wielding a machete. It wasn’t too long before we found Marvel. He had been taking a break and needed to start running again. He turned around and missed a couple spear throws at me and Cato before taking off. I didn’t want him finding any of our four enemies and joining up with them out of spite. He was zigzagging through a dense forest, so it was hard for Cato to catch him and my man missed a couple shots. Marvel picked up one of the spears and turned around to throw it when Cato threw again. Marvel slumped over, hit right in the heart.

 

“They died as they had lived,” Cato mused after Marvel’s cannon went off.

I figured it out, saying “Marvel liked throwing spears, and you killed him with one – so you got Clove with a knife?”

“Yeah,” he answered.

 

We decided to wait here and see if the others would show up, and a day alone with Cato was nothing to complain about. I made it through the minefield to get the bag of apples. We sat down on some boxes outside the supply pile. Cato pulled one out and he held it up to my mouth. I took the offered bite, but said “There are far better things that hand could be doing.” He got the message, putting the apple down and putting his hand down into my bra. As he was playing with my nipples, I thought _I could get used to this._ I wanted to go somewhere else and do more. We needed a respite from the grim task behind and ahead of us, and we had each other, which was more than enough. I gave him an especially desirous glance. “We’ve got plenty of time, Big Shiny,” Cato said to agree with my idea. “Eleven and Twelve have been hiding since the bloodbath; they aren’t magically going to change course now.” _Like we needed excuses by now._

 

Cato was quite enthusiastic about setting up the shelter, probably because there was another pole he wanted to handle. _I sure wanted to handle it too._ He didn’t need or want help with the tent. His hands flew over the metal and fabric, and he soon beckoned me inside. I was only too glad to join him.

            Our shelter wasn’t the only tent he had pitched. Taking off his pants and undershorts together, his equipment springing out was quite a sight. I needed to get my mouth on it right away. I licked the head and tickled his jewels. I knew that drove the boys wild, and Cato was no exception. I took him all the way in my mouth and then came back up the shaft to do it again. I didn’t take my lips off of him, not for a second. He would usually last long, but not under these cir-cum-stances. He got to fill my _throat_ this time. It was an acquired taste, and I sure had acquired it. Right now, in this moment, all I cared about was doing this to Cato. All he could say was “Wow. Why didn’t we do that until now?”

            “I do want a baby. Those nights in the Training Center, I never had anything like that before, but now I wanted to have some other fun.”

            “That we did!,” he replied simply.

            “Still stunned, huh?,” I said.

“Glimmer, you do have a gifted mouth.” _And so do you._ I encouraged his tongue’s entry into my mouth.

Once he let me breathe, I joyously announced “This child is going to be the cutest baby in all of Panem!”

“Of course it will, looking half like you.” _Good answer._

 _I felt the same way._ “And half like you, handsome.”

He had a straightforward response. “I’m excited yet clueless, but darn it, this little one will have the father I never did.”

I cheered him on with “I’m sure our little girl will love her daddy.”

 “You know it’s a girl already?,” he wondered.

I answered “No, wishful thinking. My first memory is from when Lustre was a newborn, and I’ve loved her ever since. That made me want a little girl of my own some day, and maybe that day is sooner than I thought.”

He had an idea for what not to name it. “If we have a boy first, let’s name it something besides Cato 2. That’s way overdone, because we’re District 2 and the mayor’s son is Patrick 2.”

I offered suggestions of what _to_ do. “How about Julius 2?” _His father’s name, a variation of the theme._ “I didn’t want to do Lustre 2 for that matter. I was thinking Gemstone,” I continued. “Named after both our districts.”

He agreed with “I love it. Well, that settles it.” He continued with “I never really thought about it. I figured I’d have some fun with a girl hopped up on birth control like I’d been doing.”

I told the truth. “My latest shot wore off recently, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

 

The national anthem played to introduce the death recap sequence, not that it would be new information for us. We looked out of the tent into the sky anyway. District One, Marvel. _I never wanted you as a boyfriend, but I’ll still miss you, more than I thought before you were actually gone._ District Two, Clove. District Three, Nathan. We brought some gear into the tent while we were listening. Cato remembered to include the tent’s storage bags and spare parts.

 

It was time to get some sleep. In our lust-fueled haste, we hadn’t actually gotten naked – odd, isn’t that? He took his shirt off in a practical manner, but I was going to make more of a show of showing some skin. The tent was barely tall enough even for me, yet Cato would be standing up, sure enough. I took my shirt off as slowly as possible and let it flutter to the tent floor. I was no quicker with my belt, yet once that was gone, the pants followed quickly. The underwear was appropriately practical, yet I could tell from the look on his face that on me he still thought it was the hottest thing ever. “Let me help you with that,” he winked, standing up as best he could. Apparently, he could actually manage to undo a bra. I let him simply rip the panties off.

I turned around and said “How do I look?” but we both knew full well the answer to that question.  My back was pressed into his chest. He grabbed me at the waist and I bent over. “How’s that for an answer?,” he said triumphantly.

“Oh yes, very clear, answer me again _in another way_!,” I said just as positively. He took the hint. I felt him entering me from behind, a very clear feeling indeed. We made full use of the space we did have in the tent, that’s for sure!

“Sit down on my face,” he told me, and I was glad to do so. He pressed his tongue upwards into me this time. I was still dripping and convulsing, and he pleased me several more times. I got my whole body on top of him and our rhythmic motions led us to fall asleep with him still inside of me.

 

We were very tired and slept very well, as is often the case. Our voracious appetite for each other had been fed quite thoroughly. We could now focus on getting back to business. I made myself look somewhat put together when getting dressed. Cato simply threw last night’s clothes back on. Breakfast was crackers with dried meat and cheese.

 

Then we went looking for the remaining tributes, finding Rue in a tree. Cato climbed after her with a sword, but the tree was too small for him and he fell back down. I ran up to him and asked “Are you OK?”

“Of course I am,” he replied, but the subsequent barrage of District Two profanity implied otherwise. _Anger was the one emotion he never had a problem with. I got him to admit to love, but not pain, and it was better that he come off as unfazed anyway._ I wasn’t much of a tree climber, and Rue had jumped to other trees anyway.

           

The audience probably liked what was going on in our tent last night. There was nothing to recap today, but we still got to hear the anthem, like three days ago. Evidently they can’t find Thresh either. I wanted to take care of him first to get better odds when we fight Katniss and Gale. All Cato and I did this night was sleep. In a way, that really was enough for now. Nothing comforted me quite like his thick arms wrapped around my chest. Without him, I really could have won, but with him, I couldn’t lose.

 

As we were stirring in the morning, he rubbed his skin and said “I sure could use a bath.”

He had a point. Six days into the Games, we were filthy. I probably shouldn’t let myself go too much longer, saying “Me too”.

“Let’s go down to the lake,” he suggested. As long as we were going there, I grabbed the water containers to fill up. We sipped from some of the smaller bottles while walking over there, each carrying our blades. All that liquid balanced out the pieces of dried fruit and meat we were having for breakfast.

 

The lake was beautiful in the morning sunlight. “Let’s fill up the water containers before we get it dirty,” Cato said. _I could figure that out, but at least you could too._

“It makes sense to do that anyway, since the iodine takes awhile to work,” I said to counter Captain Obvious with more of the same. The lake was disturbed when we dipped the mouths of the water containers into it. We put the filled containers on the shore and left the iodine to take effect.

 

I turned my thoughts to other jugs, for it was clear to both of us that we were here for more than just taking a bath and doing laundry. It was unavoidable, but for a moment it was revealed for everyone to see just what it was that endeared him to me. However, it’s not like anyone else could have him. Well, if the audience saw all this violence, what was the problem with them seeing a bit of sex? A rock on the shore was a good place to put our things.

 

We started the actual work by merely rinsing both our clothes and our bodies. I could feel the filth coming off. I picked up some soap we had brought with us and put down on the shore. I scrubbed and rinsed the clothes before putting them back on the rock to dry. Cato took well to the alien practice of washing one’s hair by rubbing soap through it. I dove under to rinse. Cato’s impressive chest and what was below it shone brightly even though the now-muddled water. I saw him follow my lead and I’m sure he was just as impressed with this new take on _my_ body.

 

We took special care with scrubbing each other down. Then Cato waded around and went underwater to get a good look at me from behind. He lifted me up, even more effortless in water, to line my waist up with his. I said “Go for it” to what we both wanted. Obviously, I was wet even without the presence of the stud that was Cato. He entered my sweet spot while still standing behind me, lifting me up so we could slam back into each other. I appreciated this novelty in his now-familiar touch – very much so, as my moans let him know.

 

Our clothes were fairly dry after all this fun. The midday sun would finish the job. The rest of Panem got more brief glimpses as we put them back on. As we headed back with each other and our gear, he said “That felt so good in so many ways” which I agreed with totally. However, what was waiting for us was not good - Katniss and Gale were poking around. Granted, us coming back scared them off.

“What were they up to?,” I wondered.

“It looks like nothing’s missing. They were eyeing our supplies. We should have let them try, heh heh,” Cato suggested.

 

The next morning marked a week in the arena, and we were already down to only six tributes. “Raid our camp? Two can play that game,” Cato said, and we soon went out trying to find where theirs was. It turns out they had set up in the middle of the woods. Cato apparently figured out that their stuff was secured as well. However, he couldn’t warn me in time, and I landed in the dirt after running into a tripwire. I saw Cato follow one end of the wire, and I did the same in the other direction. I cut my end with a machete. Cato was less happy with what he found at his end. I heard a whooshing sound, and before we knew it, he was pulled up in a net. I used my blade to cut the strings that pulled him up. He fell down, even angrier than usual. “We knew Everdeen can shoot. This must be what Hawthorne does,” I shouted. We tiptoed around the area, swinging our blades in front of us, catching a few more triggers and destroying some supplies. Cato left the area in front of me. Somehow I lost sight of him.

 

I found Hawthorne though. “You’re not fucking your way out of the arena. A rather repulsive use of how attractive you are. I still think Katniss looks better, even before Cinna got ahold of her,” he monologued. _Trying to unnerve me, huh?_ The menacing grip on his club and knife accomplished that better than insulting my looks with a comparison to _hers_. The combination of blade and bludgeon left me stymied. “I was taught to fight and win, never thought I could fail,” I announced as I beat a hasty retreat.

 

I heard the clash of steel on steel – Cato must have found Gale. Gale was holding out for longer than I thought. There was no way I’d be of use with ranged weapons, especially right now. I wanted to come to Cato’s aid, but I also wanted to stop Katniss from coming to Gale’s aid. I saw her running around the battlefield trying to get a good shot. I tried to close the distance, but I saw her get a shot off. Cato ducked, and I hoped he was smart enough to avoid another. He was. I ran in my lover’s direction.

 

Went we met back up, he said “He got me, but I got him worse.”

“How?,” I asked.

“He clubbed my hand, but I don’t think he broke anything. I cut up his arm real bad,” Cato replied. “Damn it, I wish I had my javelins handy – then we could have dealt with Katniss at range.” I held his hand and it really didn’t seem broken. _This gesture was more than just basic medical care, and he knew it._ He popped some regular pain pills from the first aid kit. “Speaking of supplies, if they can make a decent attempt at guarding theirs like that, they might be able to interfere with ours,” he went on. We already had some things in our packs, but filled them as much as we could.

 

There was a chill in the air. He slept off his injury with the damaged hand resting on top of me. Our morning meal was more things pulled right from the supply pile and then we went out looking for Twelve. He didn’t seem concerned about Eleven right now, which seemed quite understandable.

 

We got back to the Cornucopia area to find our supply pile transformed into a smoldering pile of rubble, probably including pierces of whatever they had used to set it off. I cursed out Twelve – now was an understandable time to not be ladylike. Cato was flinging angry gestures and smashing the remnants. There had been no cannons and no bodies, so they got away with it. We had carried some things with us. Cashmere and Brutus should have no trouble lining up sponsors to provide us with what we needed to finish off the outer district bastards. I rubbed my belly to make it crystal clear to the audience that I was both hungry and pregnant.

 

No one died that day, so Katniss and Gale had escaped that explosion. The wound Cato inflicted upon Gale must not have been lethal. Katniss and Gale had ‘lost’ their sleeping bag, but if myself and Cato were any indication, they could keep warm. Speaking of which, I was feeling like such a woman in the monumental embrace of _my_ man.

 

We went out looking for some other tributes in the morning. We didn’t find any. We went to bed at the top of a hill overlooking some fields. It was a new area that might just lead to new results.

 

However, the night was very familiar – I gladly let Cato into me again. We got to that point just so naturally. It was all I could do to keep from screaming. That was difficult with his legs wrapped around mine from the side, but it was easier when I took him into my mouth again. Not only was that cleaner, it was also quieter.

 

In the morning, we found Thresh right away. Walking down into the valley he saw us and looked out from a field of tall grass. I saw Cato disappear into the maze, with his sword ready of course. Cato was tall and Thresh was taller, and I could barely see either of them. I heard metal ring, probably from Cato’s blade falling to the ground. I heard Thresh’s voice, strange and deep, shouting something about a steel penis extender. _What little he knows._

 

I yelled back “He doesn’t need one!”. I wish I could help with more than just parrying very unfounded insults. I reached for Clove’s knives, but no way I could hit Thresh without hitting Cato, especially in this terrain. I ran towards them and found out that my machete was well suited to cutting down this plant. I found them locked in a wrestling match. I swung down at Thresh’s elbow. He rolled out of the way, but had to break a hold on Cato to do it. Cato now had Thresh pinned. I found Cato’s sword and gave it back to him to finish Thresh off. _BOOM. And then there were five…_

 

Cato was further injured. I think the hand Gale hit was getting worse, and now he couldn’t favor the other one after both appendages had taken abuse from Thresh. I heard the chime that indicated the arrival of a sponsor gift. It was for Cato, a vial and syringe of the powerful painkiller morphling. It sure seemed to work.

 

We only got to put one face in the sky, let alone two or three. Winning the Games today and avoiding the recap entirely might have been too much to ask for. We could be able to finish it tomorrow, though. We’d spend a few days in the Capitol before going home, but tomorrow might be when we fulfill our dreams together. Within a week, I’d see Lustre again. I’m sure she’d take to her new brother-in-law and niece as quickly as I had taken to her all those years ago.

 

We didn’t find much food remaining in our packs, but I did find a silver gift package courtesy of Cashmere and all the Capitolites we had charmed. Again we were in place at dusk to attack at dawn; it was Katniss and Gale this time. There wasn’t much sleeping by this point. I saw something much smaller than either of them move in the morning. Rue? Excellent! Let’s kill three birds with one stone…or one throwing knife. Well, several, considering that I’m definitely not Clove. Most missed, but a few hit, and that was enough.

 

Now it was my turn to hide, from Katniss’ rage. They said goodbye, Katniss to Rue and Rue to the entire world. Katniss made a hand gesture. I didn’t recognize it, probably some outer district thing, but it was clearly respectful instead of obscene. Rue’s cannon went off at the same time. Cato indicated now was the time to attack, though I would be taking the lead.“Victory's within the mile - almost there, don't give up now,” Cato said to me. Actually, it was within the point-blank knife range between myself and Katniss. She had given Gale the bow while mourning her fallen ally. It looked like Rue’s body was already prepared for her funeral. Gale wasn’t as good a shot as Katniss (who was?) so he wouldn’t be able to stop Cato’s charge. We stood proudly, contributing to the finest traditions of our home districts together. _Cashmere, glad to be about to join you._


End file.
